Chapter 5

"My name is Jung Hyun-soo, Manager."

"Manager Jung Hyun-soo…"

"Yes."

Before I could even exchange a few proper words, I, the owner of this body, my grandson Jung Hoon, had a rough idea of how he had treated the company employees all this time. I could also sense how his colleagues felt about him.

Manager Jung Hyun-soo was cautious, still harboring suspicions that I might be playing a prank on him as he introduced himself to me.

"How old am I?"

"You were born in 1994."

1994... How old am I then?

He looked so delicate, like a pampered young man, and I had always thought he was only in his mid-twenties, no matter how much he ate. But he's much older than I thought.

"Then when did I join the company?"

"Less than six months ago."

So, he must have studied for a long time.

Right, since he's not the eldest, it's important to make sure the second son is well-prepared to support the eldest.

He was promoted to manager upon joining.

That was a good decision.

When I first got my eldest son, Hong-myeong, into Jae Kyung, I started him as a manager in the headquarters, and I did the same for Hong-joon, starting him as a manager in the Strategic Planning Department of Jae Kyung Wool.

"But do you really not need to go to the hospital?"

"I should probably go."

Going to the hospital won't solve anything.

"Still, I have a few questions before that. I'm really confused right now."

"..."

"I really wish Manager Jung knew more about me."

"..."

"Then you wouldn't have to go through this with anyone else. I want to keep this issue as private as possible. I'll be back to normal soon. That's what I feel. I want only you to know about my current state, and I'd prefer to keep you quiet about it as well."

"..."

"Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, I don't think it will be too difficult. Not many people in the company know much about you."

"What do you mean?"

"Besides knowing that you are the second son of the chairman, people in the company don't know much about you. Even in the HR department."

"HR department? So I'm in the HR department?"

"Yes."

HR department.

Not bad.

Since Jung-yeop will be leading the company, focusing the second son on HR is a good strategy.

"How can people in the company know almost nothing about me after six months?"

"That's... something only you can answer."

"..."

"You only came to work, but you never communicated with anyone in the department. You hardly spoke to anyone during working hours."

"Does that make sense? How can someone in HR not talk to people during working hours?"

Manager Jung tilted his head and said, "It's really strange."

"What else?"

"How can someone who can't even remember who they are or their age judge what's right or wrong in their job?"

Indeed, this person doesn't believe me...

"Manager Jung Hyun-soo."

"Yes, Manager."

"What is your current salary?"

"Almost 50 million won."

For a moment, I wondered why a manager's salary was so high, but then I remembered the 30 years that had passed, and it made sense.

"How many years have you been a manager?"

"Two years."

A 50 million won salary for a second-year manager in HR...

In 30 years, prices haven't risen that much, it seems.

I slowly looked around the hotel room to gauge Jung Hoon's spending habits.

If he can afford a room like this for a fleeting pleasure, he probably spends money like water.

What a reckless guy.

"Let's do this."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll give you a bonus."

"A bonus? Why?"

"Depending on your performance, I could give you a bonus equivalent to your current salary."

Manager Jung frowned deeply and stared at me.

"Of course, I won't give it all at once. You're here now, but I can always find someone else. If you don't meet my expectations, I'll need to find another option. Understand?"

"..."

"I'll give you 10 million won as an advance today. The rest will be given each time I ask you for a favor. I want to do it this way. What do you think?"

"Well..."

"There's no such thing as a free lunch. If I ask for something, I should pay for it."

"No, Manager. I..."

I quickly raised my hand to stop him.

"It won't be a big deal for you, but it will be a huge help to me."

"What kind of help can I provide?"

"Don't be curious."

"Excuse me?"

"Consider the 10 million won I'm giving you today as an advance. Don't ask questions or doubt it. Just think of it as that. I can't stop you from being curious, but don't ask me why."

"..."

"I don't know what's going on either. I don't understand this situation, and I can't make you understand it either."

"Ah..."

"I'm not joking, but I can't expect you to believe me just because I say so. So, trust the money. And give me the same level of trust as the amount of money I'm offering. Can you do that?"

After a moment of thought, Manager Jung nodded heavily.

"Why are you so hesitant? Do you think I'd ask you to steal or kill someone? I won't do anything to harm the company. If you think my request might harm the company, tell me. That's all."

"Yes, I understand. I'll do that."

With the money, I secured Manager Jung's loyalty and started asking questions.

"What is the current position of Jae Kyung Group?"

"What do you mean by 'position'?"

What a frustrating guy.

"I mean its ranking in the business world."

I really...

This is what I was most curious about.

"By industry, or overall?"

"Both, please."

"Jae Kyung Group rose to 28th place last year, re-entering the top 30 in the country."

28th place? Oh, how disappointing.

"Our airline is still number one, holding the same position for over 10 years. Jae Kyung Wool is third in the domestic industry, and Jae Kyung Food is sixth. These are the rankings from last year."

So, you finally made the airline number one.

Well done.

Really well done.

But...

"..."

"..."

What's wrong? Why did you stop talking about the industry rankings?

"Is there anything else you want to ask?"

"Is that it?"

"Excuse me?"

"Airline, wool, food. Is that it?"

"Yes, but..."

"Is that all the subsidiaries?"

"Yes, currently, we only have airline, wool, and food."

I felt a sense of unease.

"Today, Jae Kyung Group announced that it will quickly reorganize by retaining only the airline, food, and wool subsidiaries and liquidating 11 subsidiaries, including construction."

No way.

It can't be.

It can't be... but the ominous feeling didn't go away.

"Then... perhaps..."

"Yes."

"No."

Even though I said no, I still had to ask.

"What is the chairman's name, the name of my father?"

"Chairman Son Hong-joon."

I had the illusion of hearing the ominous news anchor's report from the depths of darkness again.

"Son Hong-myeong, the chairman of Jae Kyung Group, was found dead this morning at 8, hanging in his bedroom."

No. It can't be.

"Wait. Wait. Then... I have an uncle, right?"

"Ah... You mean former Chairman Son Hong-myeong?"

"Yes, that's right."

"He... He made an extreme choice during the IMF crisis over 20 years ago. It was a big news story."

"!"

"Are you okay, Manager?"

So, everything the news anchor said in the darkness was true?

Did my son, Hong-myeong, really do that foolish thing?

Why!

It feels like the sky is falling, a hundred, a thousand, a million times worse than when I was diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer.

"Manager? Manager!"

I couldn't breathe.

It felt like someone had punched me in the chest with a sharp shoe, making it impossible to breathe.

"Manager! Water, water... Just wait. Stay still!"

After taking a sip of the hotel water Manager Jung brought, I calmed down a bit, but the shock of Hong-myeong's foolish decision still left me in deep sorrow.

"So, the current chairman of Jae Kyung Group is Son Hong-joon, and I am his second son, right? Is that correct?"

"Yes, that's correct, but... even so, you shouldn't speak so casually about the chairman and your father's name."

"What about Jung Tae?"

"Are you talking about the executive at headquarters?"

"Is Jung Tae an executive at headquarters now? Let's see, he was born in 1991... Isn't he too young to be an executive? When did he start working?"

"I'm sorry, I don't know that... Should I check right away?"

"No, no. There's no need. What about Jung Yeop?"

"Who?"

"Jung Yeop. Son Jung Yeop. The eldest son of Son Hong-myeong."